Shaking mechanism for can filling machines



Aug. 6, 1935. F. L. cocKs SHAKING MECHANISM FOR CAN FILLING MACHINES s SIi eets-Sheef 1 Filed Aug. 11, 1935 ATTORNEY$ Aug. 6, 1935. F. L. cocKs 2,010,220

SHAKING MECHANISM FOR CAN FILLING MACHINES Filed Aug. 11, 1935 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 7T1! H II H II [H H ll W] H II II I H H II II YI H z lNVENTOR ATTORNEYS Aug. 6, 1935. F. cocKs I SHAKING MECHANISM FOR CAN FILLING MACHINES Filed Aug. ll, 1933 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR %-mu% zziall l -r a ala a Ill Patented Aug. 6, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT- OFFICE Martha A. Jamison Application August 11, 1933, Serial No. 684,625

21 Claims. (01. 22 s7z-) This invention relates to means for shaking down granular or pulverized material filled into cans or boxes from a weighing or measuring machine; It is common for this purpose to raise the can or receptacle with its contents off from its carrier or support and then permit it to drop back again suddenly to jar down the contents, this operation being usually performed repeatedly in order to effectually settle down the material within the receptacle. In gang weighing or measuring and filling machines, a continuouslymoving traveling conveyor (belt or chain) has been used with means for continuously shaking the cans to jar down the contents filled into them. In such machines the rapidi'ty'with which they operate frequently results in a spilling of the contents at the points of discharge from the filling chutes into the cans, because of the weighed or measured charges being dumped into the cans too rapidly to permit them to be thoroughly shaken down. To avoid such spilling, recourse has been had to traveling hoppers, or to guides or deflectors over the receptacles, and to additional shaking devices, which has resulted in an expensive and bulky apparatus. 7

The present invention has for its object to provide means for accomplishing a more rapid and effective shaking down and to prevent spilling at the point of filling, so that the entire weighed or measured charge may be settled into the can before leaving the filling position; it also aims to discontinue the shaking down operation during the feeding out of the filled receptacles and during the advancing of the empty receptaclesto the filling positions. i

The present invention provides means whereby is imparted a diiferent motion to the receptacle than the ordinary lifting and dropping opera tion; to this end a lateral tilting movement is imparted to the can while jarring down its contents. For this purpose means are provided for alternately lifting and dropping the can on opposite sides so as to impart simultaneously lateral tilting movements and a jarring-down effect.

Not only is the can lifted alternately on opposite sides, but it is also subjected to a slight turning or rotative movement. This rotation may be imparted alternately on opposite sides, each lifter both'lifting and slightly turning the can, this operation occurring in frequent alternation on opposite sides.

To prevent spilling, a cover is provided, fitting lightly over the top of the can and so mounted as to be capable of participating in the lateral tilting movements of the can; this cover has an upright extension or inverted hopper loosely enclosing the lower end of thefilling spout, and receiving the excess of material as dumped and holding such excess until, by the shaking down of the contents beneath, it is lowered into the top portion of the can. Operating means are provided for holding up the cover while the can is feeding under to the filling position and for lowering it onto the can, and; after the filling and shaking-down operations, lifting the cover at the instant when the feed is released for causing the filled can to be carried out and a newjcan to be fed to the filling position. i i

While in practice the invention finds its best application in connection with gang weighing or measuring and filling machines, yet essentially it is applicable to unitary machines for filling one can at a time. It is illustrated in the accompanying drawings as applied to a gang weighing machine for simultaneously filling six cans with granular material, such as ground coffee.

In the accompanying drawings, which show the preferred embodiment of the invention-- Figure 1 is a front elevation, partly in section; Fig. 2 shows the lower portion of Fig. 1 during the operation of feeding out the filled cans, the shaking-down mechanism being in an inoperative position;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section showing in plan the conveyor andshaking-down mechanism;

Fig. 4-is a transverse section on the line 44 in Figs. 1 and 3, drawn to larger scale;

Fig. 5 is a transverse section on the same scale as Figs. 1 to 3, showing the parts in the position for feeding out the filled can, as indicated in Fig. 2; i

Fig.6 shows an eccentric shaft in section and its connected link in elevation, on the same scale as Fig. 4;

Fig. 7 is a diagram showing the movementsof the link in Fig. 6;

. Fig. 8 is a front elevation, on a smaller scale than the preceding figures, of the right-hand end of the apparatus;

. Fig. 9 is a sectional elevation showing Fig. 8 as viewed from the right;

Fig. 10 shows a modification of Fig. 6; and

Fig. 11 is a view similar to Fig. 5 showing a modification.

The apparatus shown is designed for shaking down the contents of tin cans that are filled in groups-from automatic weighing scales (or measuring devices), and is illustrated in connection with a continuously-moving chain conveyor. It .is to be understood that the receptacles are not In the drawings, the cans A, A are carried by a 1 chain conveyor B into filling position under a series of filling spouts or chutes C, C. The conveyor is shown as constructed of two endless chains sliding in stationary troughs or channels D, D, so that the cans, while being fed in or out, rest on the chains and are supported thereby and by the channels,-as shown in Fig. 5. On being fed to the filling position shown in Fig. 1, they are arrested by a stop arm E, whereupon the charges of material, weighed or measured by any known or suitable weighing or measuring mechanisms (which form no part of my invention and are not shown), are discharged down the chutes C, C into the cans.

Beneath the opposite sides of the cans are located lifting and shaking bars or rails F, F. Operating mechanism is provided for elevating these bars so as to lift the cans off from the conveyor chains B, B; and for alternately lifting and dropping the bars for jarring down the contents of the cans; the bar on one side is being raised while the other is lowered, so that each can is alternately tilted from side to side, as shown in full and dotted lines in Fig. 4. During this operation, the cans are supported on the bars so that as either bar is lifting one side of the can, the other bar is supporting the opposite side thereof the bars thus serving alternately as lifters and supports. The two bars have-a comparatively slow rising movement for lifting the cans oif from the conveyor, accompanied by a rapid up and down movement in laterally shaking the cans and jarring down their contents. For example, the slowly rising movement may take place, say, six times per minute, the bars remaining elevated for perhaps three seconds and then descending to drop the cans back on the conveyor; while the shaking and jarring movements of the bars are comparatively rapid,-say, for example, for each bar at a rate of seven to eight hundred up and down movements per minute. This rapid motion may occur only during the period of elevation, or it may be continuous, since when the bars have descended to lower the can onto the conveyor chains, this movement is ineffective; for simplicity in the operating mechanism, the illustrated apparatus imparts continuous rapid movements to the bars.

These rapid up and down movements for the bars might be variously imparted, but it is pre-- ferred to provide transverse eccentric shafts with connecting links or levers. Two shafts G, G are shown, connected by a sprocket chain H for positive driving, so that the two shafts turn at the same speed and their eccentrics maintain always the same "angular relation. Each shaft is formed with opposite eccentrics (or cranks) g, g, having their centers 180 degrees apart and each connected with its corresponding bar F through the medium of a connecting rod or lever J. In the operative position, these connecting rods J, J stand vertical, as shown in Fig. 1, or nearly so; and in the positions of the eccentrics there shown, one of the bars F is elevated and the other is lowered, as clearly shownin Figs. 1 and 4. Thus at each turn of the shafts G, G, the higher bar is lowered and raised again, and the lower bar is lifted and lowered again; thus tilting the cans from side to side so as to laterally shake their contents, while, by reason of the rapidity of these movements, a violent jarring action is imparted to the cans such as to most efiectually shake down and compact their granular contents. It results that the measured or weighed charge for each can is with great rapidity shaken down and concentrated in volume within the capacity of the can.

For the bodily lowering of the bars, provision is made for moving the connecting links J, J down .from their nearly upright active position (Fig. 1)

to an inclined position (Fig. 2), in which they pass so far beneath the level of the conveyor chains as to be wholly below the bottoms of the cans when the latter rest on the chains, as shown in Fig. 5. The movement down is such that the rapid movements imparted to the bars by the ec-- centrics will not lift them into contact with the cans, so that the shaking-down device is inoperative while in this position. For performing these bodily lowering and restoring movements to the bars, a shaft K is provided, having an arm k to which, at a point Z, is pivoted two links m, m, which links, at pivotal points 11, are pivoted to the connecting links or levers J, J. These links m, m do not interfere with the opposite up and down rapid movements imparted by the eccentrics,as is apparent in Fig. 1, where the link m appears behind the'link m and at a difierent angle. The lever shaft K is oscillated at suitable intervals to lift the bars F, F to the position shown in Fig. l, or lower them to the position shown in Fig. 2. For this purpose an arm 70' on the shaft is connected by a link 31 to an arm 9' on a rock shaft L which is rocked at suitable intervals by any appropriate mechanism.

It is desirable to not merely tilt the cans from side to side, but also to impart to them slight rotative or twisting movements coincident with the rapid lifting and jarring-down movements. This is attained in the construction shown by causing the connecting links J, J to act as levers, their pivot points it constituting their fulcrums; thus, at each rotation of the eccentric g, the lower end of each lever J is caused to move in a circle, while its upper end has a similar circular or nearly circular or elliptical movement at the center of its pivot o, where it is joined to the bar F. This is apparent from the diagram, Fig. '7, which is drawn to the same scale as the detail view, Fig. 6; the lever J is here shown as a single line, the lower dotted circle the eccentric orbit and the upper dotted circle being the orbit of the center o,--the dotted lines 8 2 and is showing the axis of the lever in its opposite inclined positions and the lines Mi l showing the center line of the link m or m at the extreme upper and lower positions of the lever.

It is, accordingly, apparent that each point of each of the bars F, F is participating in the elliptical movement of the upper dotted orbit in Fig. '7, so that each bar, as it lifts under a can, not only exerts a lifting movement, but also moves endwise, and thereby communicates partial rotation to the can; the same, but opposite, movement is imparted by the descending bar to the opposite side of the can; thus the can, at each jarring impulse, is not only lifted and dropped-but at alternately opposite sides it is given slight rotary movement which contributes materially to the effective shaking down of the contents of the can. The contents are thus jarred vertically and are simultaneously shaken laterally and displaced rotatively--a combination of movements which is ideally effective for compacting granular material.

In order that the contents of each can after cover.

shaking downshall bejust-"suflicient to fill the canflevel full, it -is necessary that thech'arge of material before shaking dowri shall occupy; a greater volume than the capacity of the can, so that it would be liable tospill over'thetop of the can if'means were not provided for preventing such spilling. For this purpose each can is provided with a removable temporary cover M, which originally is lifted off, asshown in Fig.-5 and as the can is brought into the charging or dumping position, it is loweredbnto it, as shown in Fig. 1. For a gang' machine, the cover'M' extends over the entire series of cans that are to be simultaneously charged, asshown in Fig. I. The cover has (for each can) a chute or inverted hopper Q extending up sufficiently to provide ample capacity to hold the excess material that is shaken down, and sufliciently larger than the spout C to admit of the oscillating or tilting movement of the cover accompanying the lateral tilting of the cans, as shown in Fig. '4. The cover is preferably made of lightmaterial, such aswoo'd, inorde'r that, while it effectually; closes the tops of the cans against spilling,-it"will not ei'rert such pressure as to interferewith the lateral shakingdown operation. On its lowerside it has preferably 'a yieldingfacingNpf rubber, leather, or fabric. This yielding facing 'or packing does not make a sufficiently frictional engagement with the can tops to interferawi'th the slight rotative movementsimparted t'o'them, above described. For lifting the cover or covers"M, lever arms R, R are provided mounted on a rock shaft R and connected at theirends bylinksr, 1"with the These lever arms are operated from the rock shaft L by a link or links It connecting with an arm 2' on the shaft L. I, These movements occur synchronously with the movements of the stop arm E; by whichthe filled cans are free to be fed out by the'conveyor chains; this is readily accomplished by operating the stop arm also from the rock shaft L, which;can',bedone; as shown in Fig, 4, by connecting the stop arm with a lever S pivoted at s on a stud or rock shaft and having an arm with a pin engaged by a slotted arm T on the rock shaft L-all as shown in; Fig. 4. 3

It is desirableto be able toadjust or graduate the degree of agitation or jarring accomplished by the rapid verticalmovements of the bars F, F. With the illustratedmechanism this is readily accomplished by varying the, degree of lift imparted through the shaftfK and arm k, links m, in, and levers J, J to the bars F, F. In the posi-. tion shown in Fig. 1, with the levers J, J standing vertically, the bars F, Fare in the highest position,

and they are imparting their full jarring lift, .due to the eccentrics g,g, to the cans; but by lowering them somewhat toward the'positionshown in Fig; 2, they are brought down to-such levels that when onebar is liftingone; side ofthe can, the other bar is lowered out of contact, with the op.- pesite side, so that the can on that side then rests solely on the support afforded by theconyeyor chain or its channel D.. For thus varying the lift imparted to the levers .1, J and bars F, F, a convenient meansisthe provision of an ad- "jus tme'nt for the length of the connecting link P, whichmay beaccomplished by introducinga turnbuckle p engaging oppositely threaded ends of the linksections in a well understood manner and tightened by locknuts, as-shown, or in ,any equivalent way. For adjustingthe movement to anicety, an adjusting screwU i referably pro vided against which the arm is may contact springs 11, a being provided for drawing the levers J, J totheir highest position.

mentis derived wholly from the upper endslof the levers J, J, it is quite apparent that the bars can be omitted and the levers caused to engage. directly against the 'cans as shown in Fig. 10; This would be suitable for a single can, but for a gang machine operating simultaneously a series of cans, the long bars with their parallel motions are preferable.

The described shaking-down mechanism is readily adapted to any automatic weighing or measuring and filling machine. It is necessary only'to provide for operating the rock shaft L and its connected parts from the timing shaft usualin such weighing or filling machines. The necessary sequence of operations is that the cans are advanced by the conveyor until stopped by the stop arm E; the coverfthen is lowered into place on the cans; the weighing (or measuring) device, which may have previously been set in operation, then dumping the contents through chutes into the cans; the bars F, F are raised into position to lift the cans of! from the chains or supportsan operation which may be performed simultaneously with the lowering of the cover M (if the eccentric shafts G, G be in continuous rotation) so that the shaking of the cans begins to occur before the contents are dumped in. After a sufficientinterval of time to effectually shake down the contents, the bars F, F are lowered, thus throwing the cans onto the support of the conveyor chains; the lowered cover is lifted and the stop'E is swung out of the way (tothe position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 4), and the conveyor chains are thereby made effective to carry the filled cans out to the position where the next operation is to be performed while, after a brief interval, the next series of empty cans is carried forward by the conveyor to the filling position, and the operation'is repeated.

Figs. 8' and 9 show means for operating the rockshaft L from the timing shaft V of a known type of weighing machine. This shaft has a cam 12, which acts on a roller 0' carried by a vertical link W, the lower end of which is connected to a weighted lever arm-L fixed to the rock shaft L. The lifting-of this arm by the cam rocks the shaft and swings the lever S and stop E to the position shown in dottedlines, in Fig. 4, thereby removing the stop from the path of the cans and permitin the conveyor chains to feed the filled cans onward. The return rocking movement occurs immediately after the filled cans have been carried beyond the stop arm E, and this restores the arm to its position shown in full lines in Fig. 4, where it interceptsthe next series of empty cans which are fed intofilling position. When the first of these, cans strikes the stop arm E, it moves it forward to the position shown in Fig. 3, thereby transmitting an oscillating movement to the arm S, which turns as a shaft and to an arm S fixed thereto, this movement being transmitted through a rod in to an arm on a vertical shaft Y, which is the starting shaft of the weighing machine, and the oscillation of which immediately starts the weighing-out of the charges which are to be dumped into the cans thus placed in position.

The conveyor chains aredriven from any suitable source in the manner customary in weighing or filling machines ofthis general type. The eccentric shafts 6,6 are drivenin any suitable manner,--as, for example, by a belt. 1/ on a pulley 11 applied on either of these shafts, the belt taking motion from any convenient source.

Fig; 11 illustrates an adjustment of the shaker bars F, F. by means of the screw U and turnbuckle p so that when the bar F on one side is lowered, the can will be supported on that side partly by the bar and partly by the conveyor chain B. .At this instant the forward travel of the chain imparts a rotative tendency to the can, since the can rests on it only at one side, .being lifted off from the other chain. This rotative effect may be utilized in addition to'the rotative impulse imparted by the lifted bar F on the-other side, due to its oblique movement, as described with reference to Fig. 7; or it may be used as a substitute for the angular movement-imparted by the leveraction of thelinks J, J.

It will be understood that the preferred-em bodiment ofmy invention thus described issubject to considerable variation in details of construction, according to the particular use i for which the machine is designed. It may thus be varied according to the shape or size of cans or other receptacles, and depending upon the quantity or weight of the material to be introduced and shaken down. -Any variations of construction which are within the skill or judgment of mechanics or engineers will be within the spirit of my invention and the scope of the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1..In a machine for filling cans comprising a conveyor and controlling means therefor whereby cans may be intermittently advanced to a predetermined station and subsequently removed therefrom, the combination with a shaking-down mechanism at said station comprising means for repeatedly lifting a can at one side'and dropping it so as to impart a lateral tilting movement thereto, of means whereby the conveyor and the shaking-down mechanism'may each be rendered ineffective upon a can throughout the period during which the other is effective.

2. In a machine for filling cans, a conveyor for intermittently advancing the cans, and a shakingdown mechanism at a stopping point in the travel of the cans, comprising means for repeatedly lifting and dropping the can on opposite sides alternately. so as. to impart opposite lateral tilting movements tothe can while jarring down its con tents. V r

3. In a machine for filling cans, a conveyor for intermittently advancing the cans, and a shakingdown mechanism at a stopping point in the travel of the cans, comprising means for repeatedly lifting the can at one side, and dropping it, and simultaneously imparting to the [can av partial rotation.

4. In a machine for filling cans, a conveyor for intermittently advancing the cans, and ashakingdown mechanism at a stopping point in the travel of the cans, comprising. means for, repeatedly lifting and dropping the can on opposite sides alternately, and simultaneously imparting partial rotative, movements to the can.

5. Ida machine for filling cans comprising a can support and conveyor, means for intermitt ently moving the cans out of contact with the conveyor, a shaking-down mechanism comprising means for-tilting a can, by repeatedly lifting it atits'oppositesides in alternation, while so out of'contact with the conveyor, and means for finally re-establishing contact between the can and. conveyor.

for finally dropping the can onto the conveyor,

causing it to be carried away from the shakingdown mechanism.

'7. In a machine for filling cans comprising a can support and. an endless conveyor, a shakingdown mechanism comprising means for repeatedly lifting the can at opposite sides alternately while out of contact with the conveyor, and for finally dropping the can onto the conveyor to permit the latter to carry the can away from the shaking-down mechanism.

8. In a machine for filling cans, an endless conveyor constituting a can support, a stop for arresting the can in the filling position, and a shaking-down mechanism comprising means for repeatedly lifting the can at opposite sides alternately off from said conveyor, and for dropping it to jar down its contents, and for finally lowering the can onto the conveyor and removing said stop to permit the conveyor to carry the can away from the filling position.

9. In a machine for filling cans comprising a can support and conveyor, shaker bars beneath the can movable up and down to lift the can above the conveyor and lower it onto the conveyor, and means for imparting to said bars rapid alternating lifting movements to repeatedly lift and drop the opposite sides of the can'alternately.

10. In a machine for filling cans comprising a can support, a shaking-down mechanism comprising a shaker bar beneath one side of the can, and driving mechanism for slowly lifting and lowering the bar and for imparting to it simultaneously a rapid up and down movement for jarring down the contents of the can.

7 11. In a machine for filling cans comprising a can support, a shaking-down mechanism com prising a shaker bar beneath one side of the can, and driving mechanism for imparting to the bar simultaneous lifting and endwise move ments whereby it imparts to the can a lateral tilting movement accompanied by a partial rotation.

12. In a machine for filling cans comprisinga can Support, a shaking-down mechanism comprising shaker bars beneath the opposite sides of the can, and driving mechanism for slowly lifting and lowering said bars and for imparting to said bars rapid alternating lifting movements to repeatedly lift and drop the opposite sides of the can alternately.

13. In a machine for filling cans comprising a can support, a shaking-down mechanism com prising a lifter beneath one side of the can, and driving mechanism for raising and lowering the lifter and for imparting to it rapid upward, endwise and downward movements whereby to im part to the can lateral tilting and partial rotating movements.

14. In a machine for filling cans comprising a can support, a shaking-down mechanism comprising shaker bars beneath the opposite sides of the can, and driving mechanism therefor, including transverse shafts having eccentric por tions, and levers engaged by said eccentric por-' tions and pivoted to the bars and having an intermediate pivotal engagement around which they oscillate, whereby they impart to the "bars jarring movements in an approximately circular path.

15. In a machine for filling cans comprising a can support, a shaking-down mechanism comprising shaker bars beneath the opposite sides of the can, parallel levers for each bar pivoted thereto, transverse shafts having eccentric portions engaging said levers, and means for imparting longitudinal movements to the bars and levers for raising and lowering the bars.

16. In a machine according to claim 10, means for adjusting the lifting movements of the bar whereby to determine the extent of the lifting of the can thereby.

17. A machine for filling cans comprising means for advancing successive cans to the filling position, a discharge spout through which the material is dumped into a can, means for tilting the can to shake down its contents, a cover for the can top movable to adapt it to the tilting movements of the can, and means for lowering and raising said cover by telescoping it with respect to the spout during the feeding in and out of the can.

18. In a machine for filling cans comprising a can support, a discharge spout through which the material is dumped into the can, means for tilting the can to shake down its contents, and a cover for the can top movable to adapt it to the tilting movements of the can, said cover having a portion loosely engaging the spout to receive within it the material discharged through the spout to prevent spilling until such material is shaken down into the can.

19. In a machine according to claim 18, the cover having a yielding packing loosely engaging the top of the can.

20. A machine for filling cans comprising means for advancing cans in succession to a filling station, a discharge spout at the filling station through which material may be charged into the cans in succession while at the station, means for tilting each can while at the station to shake down its contents, a cover for the top of a can located at the station, the cover being movable to adapt it to the tilting movements of the can, and means for raising and lowering the cover, the can advancing means and the cover raising and lowering means being so related as to cause the cover to be lowered as a can is moved to the filling station and raised as it is moved away from said station.

21. In a machine according to claim 8, a cover loosely engaging the top of the can and movable to adapt it to the tilting movements of the can, and means for lifting oil the cover operated coincidently with said stop.

FRANK L. COCKS. 

